Three top travel agencies to equitise soon

Update:
August, 31/2019 - 08:40

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The Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi. Hanoitourist has the most luxurious hotel system in the northern region, including Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi. — Photo cafef.vn

HÀ NỘI — Three leading travel agencies in Việt Nam, which own a range of luxury hotels, look set to equitise by the end of next year.
They are Saigontourist Holding Company, Bến Thành Group and Hanoitourist Travel Co Ldt.
The three companies are included in the list of 93 State-owned enterprises that were approved for equitisation before the end of 2020 under a decision recently signed by Prime Minister Nguyễn Xuân Phúc.
Hanoitourist Corporation was established in 1963 and converted to a limited liability company in 2010. The corporation has 40 affiliated units, member companies, joint stock companies and joint venture companies.
They include Hanoitourist Travel Company, Hanoi Service and Tourism Company and Hanoi Entertainment Service Company, which operates Hà Nội West Lake Park. They also have offices for rent in many prime locations in the capital city.
Notably, Hanoitourist owns the most luxurious hotel system in the Northern region. The company currently holds stakes in five five-star hotels Hà Nội: Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi, InterContinental Hanoi Westlake, Pullman Hanoi, Hilton Hanoi Opera and Hotel De L’Opera Hanoi.
It is also stakeholder in some four-star hotels in Hà Nội such as Hanoi hotel, Thăng Long Opera Hotel and Hilton Garden Inn Hanoi, and some other big hotels in the provinces of Điện Biên, Quảng Bình and Phan Thiết.
Sofitel Legend Metropole Hanoi is the oldest hotel in the capital, built in 1901. The hotel has welcomed many heads of state and was chosen as the venue for the US-North Korea Summit in early 2019. It is currently run by the Metropole Thống Nhất Hotel Joint Venture Company, in which Hanoitourist holds a 50 per cent stake with a value of VNĐ203 billion (US$8.8 million).
Another affiliate of Hanoitourist, Hanoi Toserco, reported profit of VNĐ39 billion in 2018 and currently holds stakes in Pullman Hanoi Hotel and Hanoi hotel.
In the first six months of this year, the average occupancy of the hotels under Hanoitourist’s operation were estimated at relatively high levels, Thăng Long Opera hotel was at 71 per cent, Sofitel Legend Metropole 72.6 per cent and Hotel De L'Opera Hanoi 84.4 per cent.
In 2018, Hanoitourist recorded net revenue of VNĐ707 billion, up 26 per cent, but its consolidated after-tax profit was VNĐ225 billion, down 13 per cent. By the end of 2018, Hanoitourist had total assets of VNĐ3.7 trillion, chartered capital of VNĐ2.7 trillion and suffered accumulated losses of VNĐ36 billion.
Saigontourist Holding Company, founded in 1975, also owns a diversified hotel system. It now manages eight travel service companies, 54 hotels, 13 resorts and 28 restaurants. Saigontourist has invested in more than 50 domestic companies and nine foreign-invested joint venture companies.
It has also invested in restaurants (Bình Quới, Cung Đình and Đệ Nhất), entertainment (Đầm Sen Water Park, Rạch Chiết Golf Course), SCTV television and the Saigon Exhibition and Convention Center.
Saigontourist hold stakes in seven five-star hotels in HCM City including Rex Hotel, Majestic, Grand Saigon, Caravelle, New World, Sheraton Saigon and Pullman Saigon Center and one five-star hotel – the Majestic Hotel – in the northern province of Móng Cái. It has also invested in a series of four-star hotels in HCM City, Vũng Tàu, Nghệ An, Quảng Bình, Ninh Thuận, Nha Trang, Quy Nhơn and Hạ Long.
Last year, Saigontourist received 2.92 million visitors, up 14.8 per cent. The average occupancy of its hotels was 68 per cent, up from 64 per cent in 2017. The company recorded revenue of VNĐ6.7 trillion, up 7 per cent year on year, and consolidated after-tax profit of VNĐ983 billion, down 15 per cent.
By the end of 2018, Saigontourist had total assets of VNĐ11.9 trillion, chartered capital of VNĐ7 trillion and undistributed profit of more than VNĐ2 trillion.
Bến Thành Group, established in December 1997, has invested in 32 member enterprises in four fields including tourism services, trade services, real estate services and industrial production.
Some member companies of Bến Thành Group include Bến Thành Jewelry (BTJ-owned Precita), car distribution company Saigon general service corporation (Savico), Huế Travel, Bến Thành Tourist, Norfolk Mansion and Phú Nhuận Trading Joint Stock Company.
Bến Thành Group also owns a diverse system of 25 hotels and resorts such as Sofitel Saigon Plaza, Renaissance Riverside Hotel Saigon, Norfolk Hotel, Saigon Quảng Bình Hotel and Saigon Ninhchu Hotel & Resort.
Last year, Bến Thành Group recorded net revenue of VNĐ385 billion, up 62 per cent, but its after-tax profit fell 38 per cent to VNĐ175 billion. — VNS